1885 



GLEAl^INGS IN BEE CULTURE. 



739 



laid on top of the frames answer almost as 

 well. AVe are very glad indeed to get a word 

 from our good old frit^nd Mr. Jiangstroth, 

 and rejoice that he is al)Ie to be out among 

 the bees. 



j book fully, friend G. Laying queens are 

 j always much easier to introduce than virgin 

 i queens : and tlie only rea.son why we go to 

 ' this extra In ' " ' 



BUILDING UP NUCLEI IN FLORIDA. 



IS A QUEEN'S PHOLIFICXESS IMPAIRED BV KEEP- 

 ING HEK CONSTANTLY AT WORK FOR 

 MANY MONTHS? 



HAVE received and read Gleanings for .Sept. 



., 15. Ihopedjto see an article in it bj' an ex- 

 perienced bee-keeper, on " Building- up Nu- 

 clei;" but us I am disappointed, I shall ask 

 you to give n)c foot-notes in reference tn :i 

 few questions. 



Suppose 1 want to increase my nunil)er of col- 

 onies. After building up a nucleus to a full colony, 

 then dividing that colony and keep on feeding iill 

 it builds up again, then dividing that colony again, 

 will the old rjuecn continue laying as well as at 

 first, or does she need rest? If she will not lay as 

 well, or needs rest, how many divisions would you 

 advise? 



Beginning to feed a nucleus a small amount of 

 sugar, and increasing the amount as it increases in 

 bees, what amount of sugar do you think you would 

 ho apt to be feeding by the time it gets to be a full 

 colony ? 



Suppose it is summer, or think of me down hei-{! 

 in a summer land (by the way, r want to name my 

 apiary the "Summerland Apiary," if you do not 

 know of any by this name), and you wish to stop 

 increasing, would you stoj) at nnce. or would you 

 diminish the feed gradually? 



QUESTIONS FOIt MR. DOOI.ITTI.E. 



In (JLKANiNOS for Aug. 15, on page .')r>T, in the last 

 two sentences you speak of introducing virgin 

 queens. Now, under this same cirenmstance — as 

 introducing a laying (jueen would certainly lie of 

 advantage — do jou not introduce laying queens 

 when you have them on hand? If not, why not? 

 Are the bees more likclj' to kill a laying (jueen? 

 Would you advise a bee-keeper to follow th(> plan 

 of introducing laying queens when he has them 

 under the above circumstance? I work my bees 

 for comb honey, and like your opinion on 'any 

 thing relating to the working of bees for comb 

 honey. L. W. CiRAV. 



Troy, Fla., Sept. :','>, 1S8.1. 



Friend G., 1 have never been able to see 

 that a i|ueen was injured, or made any 

 shorter-lived. Iiy keeyjing her at work con- 

 tinually. Eveii the i)ueens that 1 kepi lay- 

 ing through the winter, iti my greenhouse 

 experimen^ts, seemed to lay just as well 

 when spring came as those tlial had had a 

 rest. — In regard to the amount of sugar re- 

 quired, it is almost impossible to give any 

 answer, so much depemls upon the number 

 of bees you feed, and that depends upon the 

 prolittcness of the queen ; also as to whether 

 they get any assistance by way of stores in 

 the fields. You can stop increasing at once 

 or not, just as you choose. Cutting off the 

 rations suddenly may make the bees cross 

 for a day or two, but I can not see that it 

 does any harm otherwise.— If you will ex- 

 cuse me for partially answering the ques- 

 tion you addressed to friend I)., I would 

 suggest that you Jjave not read your ABC 



I introduce virgin queens 

 ■t tliat they are always 



uibl» 

 is because of the f; 



recogni'/.ed as l)eing ditlicult to introduce un- 

 der almost any (urcumstauces. Of course, 

 the same plan would answer for introducing 

 laying (lueens, but no one would think of 

 going to all this pains when we have estab- 

 lished plans so much simpler. 



PREVENTING AFTER-SWARMS. 



SDMK'i 



KTHER FROM FRIKND HEDPON. 



0Xj)age T').'., Bro. Doolittle rather chides me, 

 and insinuates that I am prone to blind ad- 

 herence to certain petted plans. I hope and 

 trust I am not guilty of any such non-pro- 

 gressive tendencies. 1 mean that my future 

 works shall prove that I am not. Bro. D. thinks I 

 am too conservative, because 1 do not at least try 

 his additions to my plan of preventing after- 

 swarms. I can not agree with him regarding the 

 cause of my refusal to test the said additions. The 

 real reasons are these: 



1. .\s Dr. Miller recently stated, there are certain 

 nnitters and ])rinciples, connected with our pur- 

 suit, that a bee-keeper of average intelligence and 

 considerable experience can correctly decide upon, 

 without troubling himself to put to practical test. 



2. I do not need to test the speed and efficiency of 

 additions and comi>licatioiis that are in no way 

 needed. 



The plan, as I have heretofore given it to your 

 readers, being speedy and simple, worked perfectly 

 with me, with many colonies, and in different sea- 

 sons; and had it not, you may lie sure I would not 

 hav(< jiresented it to the pufdic. Many have been 

 the ))rivate reports reganling the success with it; 

 and I am of the opinion, that, while it may be true 

 that it is one of the methods that will vary in vary- 

 ing localities, still the usual cause of failure is due 

 to imperfections in the detail manipulation. 



I'erhaijs in Uro. Doolittk's locality his bees are 

 not workirig lively in the fields from hives that 

 have cast prime swarms seven days previously, and 

 he, having alisorbed the npirit of the i)lan, wittingly 

 added the jirecautionary measure of making the 

 rcfuioval of the old colony, only when the young 

 bees were out for their exercising and localizing 

 flights. Thus by the use of his native tact and clear 

 understanding of the jtrineiples of this method, he 

 can now say, with the rest of us, " Success is mine," 

 iiR'urring no added manipulation, only the extra 

 care of watching for the exercising flights above 

 referred to. 



Bro. D.'s "explanation " fif where my old colony 

 get^bees with which to form these second swarms 

 is not at all satisfactory to me. My bees never act 

 as he describes, in this locality. 



My experience in manipulating bees, and the im- 

 plements connected with them, tells me, without 

 any practical tests, that my plan, when hampered 

 with his additions, as given on page .'jJSe, is no im- 

 l)ro\iuent over allowing the old colonies to cast 

 their after-swarms, and our hiving them, as of old. 

 This is true of any apiai-y as well equipped for nat- 

 ural increase as are mj' own. 



Regarding the "chaff hives " and "Simplicity 



